Chapter 384 – “I Will Cooperate with the Gwi-gyo” (2)
What was she thinking?
As soon as Noh Hee-bang declared her cooperation, Yeong-ho-kyeong immediately released the three women from their confinement. However, they were not completely free, as they were released on the condition that they would work for the Ma-gyo.
The problem was why she had come out like this.
Even though Hwangbo Hyo-sun, who had decided to remain neutral, and Mong-ah, who had fallen into sex to make a baby, were understandable, Noh Hee-bang’s sudden change of heart was inexplicable, so Yeong-ho-kyeong and I had to scratch our heads.
We talked while releasing the three women, but in the end, we got no results.
“Well, aren’t you calling us to tell us that?”
“Well, that could be the case.”
Although Hyeong-wan seemed uninterested, it was not a wrong statement, so I agreed without hesitation.
I was walking through the streets of the Un-ga-sang-dan, which was bustling with people busy working with Hyeong-wan. The destination was Noh Hee-bang’s hideout.
I had already heard about the rough business plan from Yeong-ho-kyeong, so I said we would discuss how to proceed later.
“For example, we could talk about whether we can cooperate with the Ma-gyo without any problems.”
I couldn’t tell exactly what she was thinking, but judging from Noh Hee-bang’s attitude so far, she would never just follow Yeong-ho-kyeong blindly.
She might delay the expansion of the business, or she might be thinking of ways to contact the outside world and establish another rival.
That’s why I needed to keep an eye on her movements, but Hyeong-wan seemed to be too sensitive to my thoughts.
“A beggar wouldn’t hate money, would he? If you know the expansion trend of the top, anyone would drool…”
This is not a wrong statement either. With the rush of ridiculous manpower, the influence of the Ma-gyo Coupang and the Un-ga-sang-dan was skyrocketing.
But in the middle of listening to this, something else started to bother me.
“Something’s strange?”
Hyeong-wan’s cautious words were strange, and I couldn’t adapt to them. Even now, she was watching me carefully, blurring the end of her words.
From the beginning, I expressed my discomfort when Yeong-ho-kyeong assigned Hyeong-wan to me. She was not a pleasant person to deal with, as she acted recklessly from the first time we met.
Chapter 384 – “I Will Cooperate with the Gwi-gyo” (2)
How many people know your true identity here? Hyeong-wan is one of them. If it’s too difficult, I can change it, but…
I couldn’t refuse any longer, as I knew that the Ma-gyo was absorbing an incredible amount of manpower. Surprisingly, it was relatively peaceful, just as Yeong-ho-kyeong had said.
What’s going on?
“Is there something on my face?”
“Oh, no. I just remembered something…”
I started walking back the way I came, lost in thought.
Yeah, what does it matter? It’s better for me if I don’t make things difficult for myself.
As I thought that, I found myself in front of Noh Hee-bang’s hideout. When I put my hand on the door to go in, I saw that the other three women had already gathered inside.
There was no sign of the Ma-gyo followers waiting outside.
“I’m the last one to arrive. Have you been waiting long?”
“No, it’s not a problem. The hideout is far away, so it’s inevitable.”
Noh Hee-bang replied, waving her hand lightly.
“And it’s not really late. We just happened to run into each other outside and gathered early, so don’t worry about it.”
“Is that so…?”
If it were someone else, I might have let it go, but because it was Noh Hee-bang who said it, I thought, ‘Is that really true? Could there be some other intention behind it?’ But even if I thought about it more deeply, there were no clues.
‘I’ll ask Mong-ah later what was said.’
I organized my thoughts and sat down in the empty seat. Then, naturally, everyone’s gaze gathered on Noh Hee-bang.
Noh Hee-bang looked around briefly, then lowered her voice and said, “As I already mentioned to the two of you here, Kang So-hyeop. I received an offer from the So-gyoju.”
“An offer…?”
Noh Hee-bang began to explain relatively briefly.
The Ma-gyo is pursuing a new form of business that overturns the existing distribution network that connects the place of origin, the trading country, the wholesaler, and the end consumer. And to streamline that new distribution network, they need the information power of the open market, so they offered to cooperate with us.
I already knew the story, but I listened as if I were hearing it for the first time, nodding my head.
And the moment the explanation was over, Hwangbo Hyo-sun immediately spoke up.
“Is it really okay to accept that offer? Or could the Ma-gyo be hiding other intentions?”
Chapter 384 – “I Will Cooperate with the Gwi-gyo” (2)
Her urgent gaze briefly swept over my face. It seemed like she wanted to confirm whether what I said earlier about the Ma-gyo’s expansion into the central region being just a normal business was really true, rather than just opposing it.
I understand. From her perspective, turning a blind eye to my cooperation with the Ma-gyo means she needs to be more cautious.
And because I was curious about why Noh Hee-bang accepted Yeong-ho-kyeong’s proposal, I listened closely to what she had to say.
“It’s not a matter of whether it’s okay to accept the offer. I, or anyone else for that matter, would have to accept this proposal.”
“Really…?”
Hwangbo Hyo-sun looked puzzled, and Noh Hee-bang continued to speak while shaking a bottle of alcohol with two fingers.
“The conditions are very favorable, aren’t they? 20% of all future revenue for the next three years. Anyone would have to accept it. And we already have the necessary information in our possession, so just by compiling it, we can see a huge profit.”
“But, don’t you think it’s risky? Do they not know that we’re dealing with the Ma-gyo?”
“We’re not becoming their lackeys, are we? If we sense something suspicious, we can cut ties then.”
Noh Hee-bang spoke lightly as she opened the bottle and took a sip of alcohol, while Hwangbo Hyo-sun was left speechless.
Is it really true? It’s hard to believe that Noh Hee-bang, who suspected me over such a trivial matter, would make such a rash decision…
“Noh Bang-ju! This is not something to be taken lightly!”
“Hwangbo Yeohyeop. I understand that you have many concerns, but the affairs of this hideout are my responsibility as the Bang-ju. It’s a decision that has been carefully considered…”
[You don’t have to answer me. Just listen.]
Hwangbo Hyo-sun’s face turned red as she raised her voice, and Noh Hee-bang retorted with a slightly prickly tone, but soon the premonition rang in my ears.
As we exchanged cautious glances, I could tell that Mong-ah and Hwangbo Hyo-sun also heard the premonition. Just like how Haomundoga showed me before, Noh Hee-bang was telling me the real content through the premonition while she rambled on about other things.
[There is a reason why I accepted the Ma-gyo’s proposal. It’s to put a leash on them.]
Indeed, it wasn’t just about the taste of money. For the past three days, Noh Hee-bang had been thinking about Yeong-ho-kyeong’s intentions.
As a Bang-ju known for handling more than half of the information circulating in Gangho, she was in a position where she had to understand not only what was in front of her, but also the hidden intentions behind it.
Chapter 384 – “I Will Cooperate with the Gwi-gyo” (2)
She looked at me urgently, not just opposing but confirming whether my previous statement about the Ma-gyo’s expansion into the central region being just a normal business was true.
I get it. From her perspective, turning a blind eye to my cooperation with the Ma-gyo means being cautious.
And because I was curious about why Noh Hee-bang accepted Yeong-ho-kyeong’s proposal, I listened to what she had to say.
“It’s not a matter of whether it’s okay to accept the offer. I, or anyone else for that matter, have no choice but to accept it.”
“Really…?”
Hwangbo Hyo-sun looked puzzled, and Noh Hee-bang continued to speak while shaking a bottle of soju with two fingers.
“The conditions are not very favorable, are they? For the next three years, 20% of the total revenue generated. Anyone would have to accept it. And there is already information available in our network that they need, so just collecting that information alone could bring in huge profits.”
“But, don’t you not know that the other party is the Ma-gyo?”
“Are we becoming their lackeys? If we sense something suspicious, we can cut ties then.”
Noh Hee-bang spoke lightly, taking a sip of the soju from the bottle’s opening, and Hwangbo Hyo-sun was left speechless.
Is it really true? Noh Hee-bang, who suspected me for such a trivial matter, doesn’t seem like she would make such a reckless decision…
“Noh Bang-ju! This is not something to be taken lightly!”
“Hwangbo Yeohyeop. I understand that you have many concerns, but as the owner of this hideout, it is my responsibility to make the final decision. This is something we have carefully considered and decided on…”
[You don’t have to answer me. Just listen.]
Hwangbo Hyo-sun blushed and raised her voice, and Noh Hee-bang retorted with a slightly prickly tone, but soon a secret message rang in my ears.
As we exchanged cautious glances, I could tell that Mong-ah and Hwangbo Hyo-sun also heard the message. Just like how Ha-o-mun showed me before, Noh Hee-bang was telling me the real content through a secret message while talking about something else.
[There is a reason why I accepted the Ma-gyo’s proposal. It’s to put a leash on them.]
Indeed, it wasn’t just about the taste of money. For the past three days, Noh Hee-bang had been pondering Yeong-ho-kyeong’s intentions.
As the owner of the open market, where more than half of the information circulating in Gangho is said to be controlled by her, she was in a position where she had to grasp not only what was in front of her, but also the hidden intentions.
“Good. Then let’s meet again in an hour. We will have a meeting with the top executives, so I hope you will all join us. If you notice anything suspicious during the meeting, feel free to point it out. After all, it’s something that the Gwi-gyo leader has agreed to,” Noh Hee-bang said.
“Sure, see you later.”
Hwangbo Hyo-sun was the first to get up from her seat, followed by the other two. Their expressions didn’t look too good, so it was reasonable to assume that they were worried about the situation at hand…
“I hope that’s all there is to it.”
Even the most trustworthy people could only rely on their faith, and her situation was too complicated to trust anyone completely.
Noh Hee-bang closed the lid of the bottle of soju, feeling the bitterness of the alcohol due to her inability to let go of her suspicion towards others.
